Haunted New York

New York in autumn feels both festive and unsettled: Something about the changing weather makes us curious about the cycle of life and death. It’s the perfect time to reflect upon all the feet that have walked these streets before us, and all the eyes that have watched the city evolve. Some of these eyes seem to be watching us still. You can scarcely walk a block in Manhattan without encountering a haunted landmark.

Maybe you’d like to get away from the spookiness and say a little prayer for the dead. If you find yourself at Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, located on Mott Street just a few blocks east of Washington Square, you may not realize that you’re praying above yet another mausoleum. Who haunts Old St. Patrick’s? None other than the ghost of runaway slave and hairdresser, Pierre Toussaint.

There is also the long-deceased bishop who just can’t turn away from his old parish. Legend has it that Bishop Dubois, buried at the entranceway of Old St. Patrick’s, is seen with regularity. View images of this architecturally stunning building and find mass schedules on the parish’s Web site, but don’t expect much about its poltergeists. You may glean some insight into the ghosts of Old St. Patrick’s from this tour taken by the Bowery Boys. Or visit a virtual tour of the New York macabre through NYC24.org: Its “A Walk On The Dark Side” lists Old St. Patrick’s as its first stop.